Upon hearing that, Meng Kefei flipped over in pain and stared at her.
“Let’s go. Get up now.”
Meng Kefei finally sat up under the urging of Tang Yuanyuan, and the two went to take a shower.
At night, when the day’s activities were done, Tang Yuanyuan came back to their room and fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. As for Meng Kefei, she was troubled because she realized that she had sweated again at night after the shower. Thankfully, she shared a bed with Tang Yuanyuan so her odor would not affect the others.
On the fourth day of the military training, most girls on the base were tanned from the sun. Even after they used the sunscreen, their skin turned a darker shade, and Meng Kefei was one of them. She thought that she had carefully applied sunscreen before any activities under the sun, but her skin still got tanner.
However, when she turned around to look at Tang Yuanyuan beside her, she noticed that Tang Yuanyuan did not get darker from the sun exposure. Even when it was hot outside, her skin only flushed and remained fair. Usually, the skin would have turned a shade darker after reddening, but Tang Yuanyuan’s skin looked the same.
“Why didn’t you get tanned?” Meng Kefei asked her enviously. Upon hearing that, Tang Yuanyuan slowly replied, “I don’t get it too.”
Meng Kefei joked at her appearance, “Well, perhaps the sunscreen that your brother bought for you is better. What brand is it?”
Tang Yuanyuan replied with the name of a brand, to which Meng Kefei responded, “That seems like an average brand. Could it be that your skin never gets tanned? Why don’t you stop using sunscreen tomorrow? Besties like us have to get tanned together.”
Tang Yuanyuan gave a serious stare at Meng Kefei’s skin and surprisingly nodded at the suggestion. “Sure, I will not use the sunscreen then. I will get tanned with you.”
Meng Kefei did not expect her to go with it and chided her, “How could you take my words seriously? I’m just joking. Your skin is smooth and sensitive. Didn’t your brother remind you not to get sunburnt?”
“Yeah, I think so.”
Before going out on the second day, Tang Yuanyuan wanted to put some sunscreen on her skin, but she could not find the sunscreen that her brother bought for her even after rummaging through every single corner.
“What happened?” Meng Kefei asked her, noting that she had been going through stuff in search of something.
“Fei, my sunscreen is missing,” Tang Yuanyuan informed her glumly. Later, she thought of something, and she flashed a grin at her friend. “Do you think that it’s the heavens that purposely made my sunscreen go missing so that I could get tanned with you?”
Hearing that reply, Meng Kefei looked astonished. “It’s missing? How? Did you search for it carefully?” After that, Meng Kefei squatted beside Tang Yuanyuan to search for the missing sunscreen, but they could not find it anywhere in the bag. “Didn’t you always place the sunscreen in your bag?”
“Yes. One in my bag and one under my pillow. Everything was fine before this. Why did they all go missing now? I think I’ll just go without sunscreen today.”
“No, you shouldn’t.” Meng Kefei shook her head in objection. “If they’re missing, then let them be. You can use mine instead.” Then, she turned around and took her sunscreen, handing it over to Tang Yuanyuan.
“Thank you! Fei, what would I do without you?” Then, Tang Yuanyuan used the sunscreen lent to her by Meng Kefei.
When they exited their room, they bumped into Zhang Xiaolu and Yuan Yuehan. Those two were also tanned from being under the sun. When they saw Tang Yuanyuan walking toward them, they felt bitter and envious.
“Why aren’t you tanned?”
“Yeah, Yuanyuan, why is your skin still fair? Maybe the sunscreen that your brother bought for you is better. Why don’t you share it with all of us?”
Tang Yuanyuan answered that the sunscreens Yuchi Yishu bought for her had all gone missing. Her reply prompted Zhang Xiaolu and Yuan Yuehan to look displeased. “Yuanyuan, don’t be so selfish. Didn’t your brother buy a bunch of sunscreens for you? There are only a few days left at training anyway. Just share some with us.”
“I’m really sorry, but my sunscreens have really gone missing.”
Meng Kefei immediately went up to shield Tang Yuanyuan. “If she said they’re missing, they are missing. Plus, sunscreens are more or less the same. If you get tanned, it must be your own problem. Any sunscreen brand won’t save you from it.”
The two girls were nice to Tang Yuanyuan for the sake of her brother. Even though they did not like Tang Yuanyuan, they wouldn’t verbally abuse her. However, it was a different story with Meng Kefei. Not only did Meng Kefei not have an older brother, her family background was also not influential. In the eyes of Zhang Xiaolu and Yuan Yuehan, Meng Kefei was a lowly girl whom they did not wish to befriend. It looked like a joke to them when Meng Kefei attempted to protect Tang Yuanyuan.
The two shot a look at Meng Kefei, thereafter Zhang Xiaolu walked up to her. “We’re talking to Yuanyuan. Why are you acting out?”
Tang Yuanyuan seemed to notice that the atmosphere was off, and she nervously walked up to calm both parties. “Let’s not argue about it. The sunscreens are really missing. If I could find them, I wouldn’t keep them away from you. Today, I’m using Kefei’s sunscreen.”
“Why would your sunscreens disappear out of nowhere?” Zhang Xiaolu laughed coldly. “Are there thieves in this dorm? Should we report to the instructor and catch the thief?”
Yuan Yuehan agreed with the suggestion, “Right? What a weird coincidence that a thief had just popped up all of a sudden! Before this, when we did not ask for your sunscreen, we had never witnessed any stealing in this dorm.”
Their tones sounded rather odd, thus irking Meng Kefei. “What are you implying? The sunscreens are really missing. It’s not like Yuanyuan’s purposely keeping them from you. If you don’t believe in her, you can search her bag!”
Tang Yuanyuan admitted to it in silence. Zhang Xiaolu and Yuan Yuehan exchanged glances and inched closer to ask in a low voice, “Your sunscreens are missing? Are they stolen?”
Tang Yuanyuan nodded. “Yeah. I could not find it even after going through my stuff. All my sunscreens are gone.”
“I guess they’re stolen.”
Meng Kefei looked confused. “Who’d be so boring as to steal two tubes of sunscreen?”
“There are many people like that. Lately, everyone has been tanned from training except for you. Perhaps someone was jealous and stole your sunscreen so that you couldn’t use it. Then, you’d be tanned like everyone else.”
“That’s right! That must be the reason. But didn’t you use it yesterday? It was just within one day’s time. Who’d target your bag and steal the items before you returned to the dorm? There must be witnesses.”
At this point, Zhang Xiaolu was reminded of something, and she immediately stared at Meng Kefei. “Meng Kefei, are you jealous of Tang Yuanyuan’s fair skin and stole her sunscreens?”
Facing the sudden accusation, Meng Kefei’s face contorted. Tang Yuanyuan hurriedly helped to defend Meng Kefei. “That’s impossible. Fei isn’t the type of person who’d steal. Stop suspecting her.”
“Yuanyuan, your sunscreens are missing. Except for you, all three of us are suspects. Why shouldn’t we suspect Meng Kefei?”
Meng Kefei stood out and retorted, “If everyone is a suspect here, both of you cannot escape it as well. Maybe you’re jealous of Yuanyuan.”
“You b*tch! What nonsense are you talking about?”
“Isn’t that true?”
A loud slap was heard when Zhang Xiaolu gave Meng Kefei a slap on the cheek. “I have a bunch of sunscreens myself. Why would I steal hers?”
